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Spoilers follow for the Romain Gavras filmAthenaand the 1966 filmThe Battle of Algiers.
Athenadives into these considerations from the very beginning.
Younger brother Karim (Sami Slimane) is far less trusting.
With dirty cops in his pocket, Moktar rejects both the idealism of Abdel and the insurgency of Karim.
His priority is individual survival, and he scoffs at collective action.
Youre a harki, thats all you are!
Dont come here acting the big brother when someone dies.
All you are is a pussy in uniform for France.
The teens tactics, with their glowing flare guns and revving motorcycles and coordinated tracksuits, might seem immature.
But the feelings of alienation and disenfranchisement playing out on Slimanes impossible-to-look-away-from face are tangible and genuine.
In response, the FLN and its supporters arent an amorphous mass.
Athenaconnects toThe Battle of Algiersvisually and thematically.
Athenas controversial endingreveals a trio of neo-Nazis as responsible for Idirs death.
Acts of violence dont win wars.
Neither wars, nor revolutions … ## Related
